OSLO, Norway, Nov. 5 (UPI) -- Political parties loyal to the ruling military junta in Myanmar are violating campaign election laws, an opposition leader said ahead of a Sunday vote.
General elections are scheduled in Myanmar for the first time in decades. Military authorities said the election will open the door for civilians, though international observers said the election is likely to be a sham.
Aye Maung, a candidate in the opposition Rakhine Nationalities Development Party, told the Democratic Voice of Burma that Prime Minister Thein Sein's party, the Union Solidarity and Development Party, was canvassing in violation of campaign election laws.
"We went to the election commission and told them what the USDP was doing," he said. "They said they don't allow such a thing for any party."
Opposition groups in the country are calling for a boycott of the polls. Authorities, however, said anyone "inciting the people to boycott" faces a financial penalty, one year in prison, or both.
There are 37 parties slated to take part in the Sunday election, though the military junta is expected to win as it is fielding more than 1,000 candidates. Opposition groups are fielding about 10 percent of that number.
The United Nations said Myanmar could ease international concerns about political transparency by releasing opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest.
